


If We Could Turn Back Time

by songofthewinds



Series: Monsters are a Bit Human, After All. [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: A LOT of Angst, Alternate Universe - Creatures & Monsters, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Angst, Bittersweet Ending, Established Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten/Suh Youngho | Johnny, Gen, I'm Sorry, Jungwoo Queen of Consent, Major Character Injury, Major Character Undeath, Monsters, Multi, Mythical Beings & Creatures, No Sex, No Smut, Other, Temporary Character Death, Urban Fantasy, Urban Legends, consent is important, highkey ten x johnny, johnny and ten eat each others out and it's fun!, lowkey xiaojun x jungwoo, protect shotaro and sungchan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:08:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27285442
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/songofthewinds/pseuds/songofthewinds
Summary: Sungchan and Shotaro had odd friends, they knew it. A group of 21 monsters of different mythological backgrounds were, indeed peculiar.But the humans loved every single one of them very much, and they always found a way to make the bunker of the creatures feel like a home.Saddly, good things don't last, and as Shotaro's imminent time to come back to Japan approeaches, so does Halloween. As a way to say goodbye and give the monsters a moment of freedom out in the real world, the humans invite their monstruos friends to a Halloween party.Nothing could go wrong if it was a Halloween Party full of costumes! But, something went wrong.Something went, terribly wrong.
Series: Monsters are a Bit Human, After All. [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1992244
Comments: 6
Kudos: 28





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic after years of remaining just a reader of fanfics, so I'm pretty proud of how it turned out. I do have to warn that there are mentions of sex, death and murder, some of the due to the nature of various creatures and as well due to the plot of this fanfic.  
> Please read carefully. I will put more warnings in the heavy chapter.  
> I'm sorry, angst just flows out of my fingers.
> 
> First chapter is a bit boring, but it gets better. Truly.

* * *

If you told Sungchan that he would be heading to an underground bunker in a forested area of Seoul, he would’ve laughed it off.

But there he was, listening to Shotaro talking about how the movie he saw last night was completely inaccurate and that “Yuta-kun is actually really nice”. The leaves crashed beneath their boots as Sungchan hugged his older by the shoulders, laughing with him.

“That’s because he is real, and he is your friend. Movies are fiction, you know that.”

Their voices and laughs were soft and free in the depths of the forest. Senseless jokes and conversations about what they did on the day, about the time they had left before Shotaro had to go back to Japan, but soon they stopped talking about that topic. None of them wanted that to happen.

“You think they will come with us?”

Sungchan’s question came out softly and doubtful, as if making it would make his fear a reality and the last chance of spend time the twenty three of them together would fly away the same way Lucas used to fly on the canopy of the trees.

“Ah, yes they will, remember I’m the soft spot of everyone?”

Shotaro quickly batted his lashes, smiling to add up to the cute innocent effect, and soon enough the boys were laughing loudly, leaning on each other to balance themselves.

The sudden breeze surrounding them stopped their laughs and sent a few shivers down their spine, their laughs stopped as they closed the distance between their bodies and looked around with curious eyes, trying to identify if there was danger upon them.

They could see a silhouette floating down the trees, the skin was glowing a soft shade of gold, and a pair of horns were also illuminated with the dim glow that the creature emitted. The low husky voice of the creature was shared through a soft quick laugh, and soon he was walking out of the shadows provided by the trees. Shotaro and Sungchan sighed in relief upon the glance of a well-known face, soon smiling kindly and bowing slightly as a greeting.

“That’s true, Shotaro is cute, and there is no way to say no to him,”

Lucas admitted as a way to reaffirm what the Japanese boy had said earlier, and the mentioned one laughed pleased at the praising offered by the older creature.

The distance between them was shortened by the mortals with a quick run, and Lucas was there, greeting them with open arms and a louder and vibrant laugh that soon was joined by more juvenile laughs of those younger than the flying creature.

“It was getting late and we were afraid of you kids not being able to arrive earlier, they sent me to see because…”

“Because you lost a bet to Chenle?”

Sungchan quickly interrupted, a gleam of emotion and fun shined in his eyes as he said the words, and Shotaro soft giggle accompanied the curious expression of the younger one.

Lucas stopped talking, looking at them with disbelief but soon allowing the corners of his mouth to curve up in a half smile. He began to shake softly his head while the smile grew more and soon a dim laugh was joined to his actions.

“Renjun and Kun, I lost the bet to them, you rascals”.

The fun in the elder’s voice could be heard, and it was passed to the humans who laughed alongside the creature. The laughs eventually stopped, as they walked to the depths of the forest, hurrying to find the bunker where the creatures hided.

Sungchan still remembered the first time they arrived to the mysterious place, fear surrounding the two younger boys and the feeling only grew upon meeting the faces of creatures that didn’t want them there. But still, they helped and saved them, and one by one, they began to bring the two humans to their closed circle. After all, Sungchan and Shotaro where that link with the outside world the monsters hardly got, thanks to them the cryptic beings were able to get more mundane things, learn about the world they were living in and adapt to the constant changes that were getting harder for every year that passed.

And now they were part of the clan, they were a family, and the fanged smiles that greeted them weren’t as scary as before.

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Xiaojun makes a decision that will change the course of destiny, and the creatures he calls friends have to agree. But how will his choice unravell?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> content warning! slight mentions of sex and death.  
> I'm sorry of the explaining of the creatures turn a bit weird, or if I don't explain much about them. I feel that if i lost myself in every description I'll lost the trail of the plot.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

* * *

“A Halloween Party? With us, /all of us/ surrounded by average humans? Is that what Shotaro is saying?”

Taeyong was hanging upside down, his strong legs keeping him in place and still on the iron pole of the called living room of the bunker. The place itself was very deep into the ground, and the fluorescents were the only solid illumination, and of course, the characteristic skylight made of metal grid that served as a sunlight source for those cold blooded of the group that needed the sunlight more than others.

But now, as the afternoon approached, the thin layer of glass was protecting them from the chilly wind of the season, the sky of Seoul was colored light shades of pink as the creatures passed around the snacks their humans kindly brought.

“That is what they are saying, a Halloween party with us twenty,”

Doyoung’s voice was as soft as usual, but then his mouth was kept shout thanks to the seaweed soup Sungchan had brought for him. At Doyoung’s answer, Taeyong rolled his eyes, moving himself through the pole until he reached a wall to which he quickly adhered himself, and began to crawl quickly, just like a lizard down the wall, soon joining the others that were sprawled around the coaches and the floor.

“I think it’s a fun idea, it will be quite a show for us to arrive so… us. Little dumb humans will be mesmerized and, certainly allured.”

Jungwoo’s velvety voice filled the place, clawed fingers tiptoed up Jaemin’s arm and quickly snatched the strawberry lollipop out of his hands soon flashing a malicious fanged grin sealed with a quick wink. At the confused and annoyed glance of the white eyed boy, Jungwoo pouted and moved the sweet in front of Jaemin’s eyes.

“It’s artificial,”

The succubus said with a pout, and soon enough turned his head to the leader of the bunch, smiling as innocently as a demon could do.

“I’m in for the idea, been a while without going out. And I wouldn’t mind kil—-,”

Jungwoo stopped talking when the eyes of twenty people fell over him, warning him about the use of his words around the two young humans, but Jungwoo just sighed with frustration, falling down to the coach because, as soon as Jaemin predicted his intentions, he moved away to where Xiaojun was standing in the shadows.

“They’re not babies you dummies! But… As I was saying, I wouldn’t mind /help out/ people that will likely be in undesired situations involved with… you know… beds.

Many people don’t want that, but you know who does? I, I want that.”

And with a prideful head flip he carried the lollipop to his mouth. All the other creatures sighed while shaking his heads, but they were used to Jungwoo’s rants and complaints regarding what his nature demanded. But the moment wasn’t suitable for the long rants, and Jungwoo always kept himself respectful and safe for work. Despite his nature.

“I agree, I mean… we know Shotaro is leaving soon…”

Now was the kitsune the one talking. Upon the last words regarding Shotaro’s departure he sighed, and the sadness took away the well-known gleam the Japanese creature always had in his eyes, nonetheless, he lighted up again and quickly pulled the boy mentioned before in a hug full of tickles and giggles, both from Shotaro and Yuta.

“It’s the least we could do for him, it’s the last time for us to spend time with him doing something fun! And with Sungchan as well.”

The last mentioned was distracted, solving a puzzle with Hendery and Yangyang, but as soon as he heard his name a nod was shared and a sad grin was displayed on his lips, even if the Chinese creatures were the only ones able to see it.

Hendery ruffled Sungchan’s hair kindly, huffing a quiet laugh while placing another piece of the puzzle. The idea of his friend leaving wasn’t as pleasing as possible, and he still felt the same way as the first time he heard the news. He felt devastated.

“Well, as the voice of the reason…”

Kun’s voice resonated with serenity in the room, he was leaning against a wall, holding one of the books the humans had brought him in previous weeks. With calmness he closed the book and walked to the center of the room, sitting on the carpet as peacefully as he walked before.

With elegance he grabbed a soda, opening it in a smooth mannerism and soon drinking from it silently.

“It isn’t safe. We are creatures and we allure creatures. That’s why there are twenty one of us collected in an underground bunker we were lucky enough to steal thanks to Jungwoo, Johnny and Mark.”

Some of the creatures nodded, like Chenle who was always an advocate for the calm and collected ideas Kun gave to them, other shook their head in a way to indicate that they didn’t agree.

But Xiaojun kept expressionless. And Taeyong noticed, as he noticed everything all the time, but for the moment he didn’t urged the words of the Jiang Shi.

“We could pick some of us to go out with him. I don’t know, hum,”

This time was Jeno talking while looked around the room, claws softly scratching the skin of his chin as his reptilian eyes inspected the people around him. When realization hit him, he just simply nodded.

“Renjun, Jaemin, Haechan, Yangyang and… me? Jisung too, that sounds fair”

“That’s not fair! Like, at all!”

The voices that answered Jeno’s suggestion sounded truly annoyed. Hendery, Lucas and, for everyone’s amusement, Mark stood up from their places. A sigh was heard, shared by Kun, who simply shrugged his shoulders, stood up and then walked back to the part of the room where he was standing before.

The Canadian demon cleared his throat, his pitch black eyes traveled around the room making sure everyone was paying attention to him.

“It isn’t fair because we all want to go out at least once a year, even those that shook their heads to say no without hesitation. We all know that –no- was a lie, and! Sungchan and Shotaro are tensing up, look at Shotaro’s hand… his knuckles are practically white from holding onto Yuta. And his face is long gone, hiding on Yuta’s neck.”

“And Sungchan was fidgeting with one of the pieces of the puzzle, we couldn’t tell him that that was the missing piece because he was gone on the motion of spinning it around.”

Hendery quickly added, crossing his arms with a condescending expression displaying on his face.

The two humans gasped and quickly stood up, coordinated even if they were in opposites sides of the room. Their motions were full of nervousness, but quickly Sungchan cleared his throat, knowing that Shotaro would be stuttering in between Japanese and Korean.

“It was just a… bad idea, we should’ve thought better about it. We offered the invitation because Shotaro /has/ to go, it’s something of the work of his parents, but it’s completely fine if you don’t come”

The younger one quickly excused himself, holding Shotaro’s hand discreetly to calm himself and his older, but it was Chicago’s Devil the one to come front and be a voice for the humans.

“I say… we all go. We take precautions as we always do, but it’s Halloween. What will happen, huh? That someone will ask Mark where he bought his contact lenses. Or that someone will ask Lucas how he managed to have such realistic horns. Chill, it’s alright.”

The red colored devil explained to the room, hands moving in a relaxed mannerism with the intention of calming everyone down. But his effort was brutally crushed when the strong stomps of the tiger shifter made their way to the center of the room.

“The worst thing that could happen is Jungwoo fucking someone to death or Xiaojun losing his self-control and sucking the last bit of qui out of everyone there you empty head stupid devil! Stop being so self-centered!”

Ten yelled out, basically flapping his arms at the side of his body, anger visible on the vibrant blue of his eyes. Johnny was thankful of the redness in his skin basically avoiding any clear sing of flustering at the words of his partner. He just sighed, coughing softly while pointing at the two mentioned and how the anger was starting to raise from the two demonic beings.

“Well, look at the time! We have to go, it’s getting late!”

Sungchan said in between stutters and with nervousness more and more present on his words, but a splashing of water from the sewers of the living room stopped everyone, shifting their attention to the alligator hybrid that after finishing his soup, remained quiet for the whole conversation.

“Ten, you are the one being insensitive. Second. You are all being monsters, literal monsters.”

Doyoung used his two hands to jump out of the water, and soon he was leaving a wet trace due to the water dripping from his clothes. Jaehyun quickly used his magic and materialized a towel for the reptilian, who began to dry himself as soon as he could, determined on keeping their place as clean as possible.

“All of us so mighty and powerful, and yet still, you dumbfounded assholes make Shotaro cry. He just want to have his friends say goodbye to him all together and you all began to fight, scream and make him feel guilty of your grumpiness and stupidity,”

A soft grunt left his throat as his clawed hand pointed at Taeyong. Doyoung kept himself quiet for a moment and soon rolled his eyes, sitting on the floor.

“We will do as Taeyong says, we want it or not.”

That was the last thing the hybrid suggested, and once again, all eyes were fixated on the lizard who was now kindly hugging Shotaro and brushing his head softly, making sure that he felt with less weight on his shoulders and reassuring him everything was alright.

On the other side, Jungwoo was doing the same with Sungchan, who was unsure of the interaction first but he remembered that Jungwoo was more decent than many humans out there, and just allowed himself to be comforted from the stress.

“You, you say what we do, Xiaojun.”

Taeyong was pointing at the Jiang Shi, who confined himself to a shadowed corner of the area, always watching and listening, but talking only when needed.

Everyone was clearly surprised, eyes traveling to the shadows Xiaojun barely left awaiting for an answer from the creature.

No one noticed how Shotaro also fixated his eyes on the Chinese vampire, cleaning his own tears as he sniffed and awaited with clear innocent eyes to an answer from his friend.

Now, there was something that could calm Xiaojun anxiousness and that was Shotaro, so, the pale eyes of the Jiang shi encountered the human sight and instantly calmed down, knowing his answer once they interchanged glances of trust.

“… I say we go. For the spirit of Halloween and, those dumb sayings”

His sulky voice filled the room, and as soon as he shared the words he disappeared back to the shadows, walking down the hall and directed to his room at the bunker.

“Don’t cry when you feel overwhelmed by the qui out there!”

Ten said in an angry tone of voice, stomping one of his feet on the ground due to his anger. Soon the teary eyed glance of Shotaro caught him, and even if the tiger hybrid tried to avoid the guilt, Doyoung was right. He was putting more weight of the human’s shoulders.

“I’m not angry, I’m just paranoid. But if the big boss say we do as Xiaojun says, and Xiaojun say we go… I guess we go”.

Ten didn’t need to finish talking because exclamations of victory were shared by those that wanted to go since the beginning, comforting the humans that gradually got more stressed for the unravelling of the situation.

It was decided. All the creatures were going out. For the spirit of Halloween.

* * *


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The day has come. The party is here. And so is an imminent danger rising unknow for the group of creatures.  
> But it's just a Halloween Party.  
> Nothing bad could happen if they were careful.
> 
> But some of them were too nice and naive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> content warning of anxiousness, slight mention of murder and death.
> 
> This is like an introductory chapter. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

Shotaro told them that the place was big, but everyone was surprised when they encountered what could be catalogued as a modern mansion.

Clean shapes, white, grays and blacks, tall windows of clear glass, small fountains and led lights adorning sitting places, tall and well groomed trees, textures of gravel, wood, bricks and concrete. Everything luxurious and high class.

It offered quite a fun contrast to the image of people wearing extravagant costumes of all shapes, colors and styles. Some were magnificently elaborated, it could be seen just with one glance; some others were as average as a decently crafted costume could be, away from the terrible ones that looked planned at last minute and bought in a dollar store or a cheap Halloween store.

And then, the creatures that were all together at the entrance. The Chinese flying creatures were containing themselves from flying. Lucas’ horns, Chenle’s feathered hair and Kun, Renjun and Winwin’s scales were already enough, they didn’t needed more attention.

Mark was replaying in his heads the words to explain how he was able to see perfectly although his eyes were pitch black, as if he was wearing full black fantasy lenses. And his other devilish friend, Johnny, had to be careful of people trying to smudge his red skin. He didn’t needed them to know that it wasn’t body paint.

“I… I don’t think I can’t do it. Everyone here is so lively. I want their essence,”

Xiaojun whispered to Sungchan and Shotaro, quickly taking the hand of the Japanese boy. Soon enough Ten was scoffing, turning to Xiaojun with squinted eyes and everyone knew he was about to say something, but Jungwoo’s excited scream was enough to distract everyone, even the shifter.

“I’m not the only slutty bunny here! Oh, I feel so welcomed already!”

The succubus clapped while softly jumping on his place, causing the laugh of few of them. It was right, he wasn’t the only one. And neither was Lucas the one that had horns, or Doyoung the one with scales. There were many people wearing fantasy contact lenses and, overall, people looking like creatures.

_It was going to be alright._

Shotaro was the one that led them, greeting some people he already knew, and to the questions regarding the peculiar group of friends he had brought he just smiled and softly nodded. His answer was a simple “friends I’ve made over the years” and everyone was pleased with the answer.

The peculiar group made their way to the backyard, some were stopped by the amused people, questions showering them of the people truly amazed by their looks and every creature answered as they rehearsed days earlier. “Ah, we work on special effects”, “It has makeup sealer”, “I can´t see much, they guide me”, etc. And everything was going as easy as they never imagined.

The important thing was how Shotaro and Sungchan were smiling to their hyungs, happy to have that goodbye time all together. It even took a smile out of Ten’s mouth because, everyone was right, going out together was a delight and something everyone on that bunker wanted as much as Xiaojun wanted to absorb the qui from everyone in that house.

“What happened mister is-dangerous-to-go-out? Changed your mind?”

Johnny mocked while hugging Ten from his waist, pulling him closer and leaving a soft peck on his head. And that was how the shifter and the devil discretely separated from the group.

One by one, everyone got separated in groups that wandered curiously the place, having fun, talking to humans, drinking, eating snacks and more. The only ones that stayed close to Shotaro and Sungchan were Taeil and Xiaojun. Taeil because he had to take care of Xiaojun, and the Jiang shi because he was regretting his decision.

“I wanted to… prove myself. Like, prove my self-control and make Ten regret his words, but everyone here is **_so alive_** , it hurts my stomach.”

White irises looked to the crowd emptily, searching for something there, one sign that could tell him that someone was terrible enough to feel less guilt on the thoughts of feeding off of them. Soon, Sungchan’s hand patted Xiaojun’s back softly, sighing as he looked around.

“Hyung, it’s alright, we are here with you. And we won’t leave you alone, is that alright?”

This time it was the Japanese boy the one talking calmly despite the noise of the music and the voices filling the ambience.

“Xiaojun, your pride is never a friend in situations like this. I don’t know if any of you realized earlier, but we are not the only creatures here, kiddos. I’ve been seeing beyond the veil of two people in specific. It’s painfully irritating how blind all of you are,”

Taeil huffed softly, soon laying his eyes on Shotaro and Sungchan, smiling at them in a reassuring way.

“Not you, you are humans, you can’t help it:”

Taeil the stood up, a tired huff leaving his lips as he softly scratched his head as he looked at the crowd soon shaking his head with disbelief. His arms flopped softly to the side of his body and he turned at Xiaojun.

“Take care of them, I will try to find Mark and Johnny, at least. These creatures, what I could see through, they are foreigners. They give me an off vibe. One of them is definitely _dead_.”

And so, the augur walked to the crowded space in hopes of finding the two demons, hoping for them to be close and not doing some things he certainly didn’t want to see.

Xiaojun was close to beg for Taeil to stay, but his words couldn’t go out, and soon he was left with a shocked expression and a hand directed towards the direction where the oldest left them alone.

“It’s okay, hyung. We can go somewhere else if you want to. Maybe inside...”

“Look, see the forest over there? It, somehow, takes you to the bunker. The thing is that you have to go through the creek instead of walking next to it, because the path to the hideout is at the other side, but it’s easy”

Sungchan explained for Shotaro, but the Japanese boy nodded rapidly upon hearing the well explained directions. Both of them had took that path without worries, mainly because after visiting the big house, they liked to visit their monstrous friends.

“You can leave early if you want. We will tell the others. And we will go directly inside. Try to find the others”

Shotaro nodded, trying to be as reassuring as he could, because he could see it, he could see how disturbed Xiaojun was, practically shivering as he held his own hands and pressed them between his knees with the intention of stopping himself from doing anything.

Once again, the two humans smiled and comforted the undead creature.

After a few minutes thinking out his answer and how risky it would be to leave the humans alone after what Taeil said, Xiaojun stood up slowly, looking around and realizing it was more dangerous for him to allure someone to the darkness and end their life.

Defeated, he sighed, nodding after a few minutes. Both the humans smiled at him and stood up to hug him. Warm tight hugs knowing they would be the last for Shotaro, because he was leaving soon, and Xiaojun wasn’t the type of going out of his dark pit. But it was okay.

Sungchan and Shotaro took him to the place in the railing where no one could watch them, **_and with their hands up high and clear smiles full of fondness they waved their goodbyes to Xiaojun._**

* * *


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All hell breaks lose. The imminent chaos exploded and now destiny forever changed.  
> Now, what was going to happen?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Conteng warning for HEAVY mentions of blood, injury, violence and death. Now, here you'll find the moment of the major character death, please read carefully. It will be alright at the end, somehow.  
> Please enjoy!

* * *

Taeil was making his way through the crowd, eyes fixated on seeing through the veils of their friends with the hopes of finding them soon, there was an odd feeling creeping up his back and now he was regretting Taeyong’s irresponsibility of putting his choice on Xiaojun’s hands.

The augur understood why their leader did it, he knew Xiaojun just wanted to be heard once, be present, and be part of the group. But the tingling sensation at the nape of his neck assured him that Taeyong took a bad decision by doing that.

“Taeil hyung? Where are the others?”

Jaemin, Jisung and Renjun moved through a bunch of people, directed towards the older one, who sighed with relief upon finding them, but quickly went back to the worrying expression on his white eyes.

The younger creatures were confused at Taeil’s expression, mostly because the augur was known for his expressionless face, always impassible and collected. But now his eyebrows were furrowed and his pale eyes looked like a rising storm.

A shiver went down the spine of the creatures, and no words were exchanged because the newcomers understood that if Taeil was worried and he **_showed it,_** something was building up. Something bad.

The next ones the group found were Johnny and Ten. Sadly.

They were all tangled up in a corner away from the crowd, in the darkness people didn’t pay much attention to them, but the creatures did see how Ten had Johnny pressed against the wall, standing on his tiptoes as they fervently devoured each other’s mouth as if they were the last meal.

Johnny’s hands wandered Ten’s shape, fixating a bit on his waist and just pulling him closer, almost as if the demon was moving Ten against his body.

The younger ones looked away, feeling as if they were interrupting something, but the augur stood there, expressionless and unmovable.

“You should’ve search for a room because exhibitionism is not good around humans,”

Taeil shouted at them causing Ten to gasp softly, soon jumping away from Johnny and bristling just like a cat while the demon furrowed his brows and flashed his fangs for a moment, only to calm down upon realizing it was just Taeil’s presence.

The shifter, notoriously angry due to the intermission caused by the oldest of the group, crossed his arms and planted his feet in front of the one that dared to interrupt them, first huffing softly, but then preparing to share some words.

But Renjun was quicker, clearing his throat to bring the attention towards him.

“There is something going on, Taeil hyung said he saw through the veil and there are two unknown creatures here. He came looking for some people to make Xiaojun, Shotaro and Sungchan some company.”

The green scales of Renjun’s forehead furrowed, soon followed by him rolling his eyes and the friends surrounding him sighing with frustration.

“Let me all remind you that we are here for Taeyong’s out of nowhere idea of putting this decision on Xiaojun, and Xiaojun wanting to prove himself”

The shifter said with crossed arms and forehead forever wrinkled with a frustrated expression. To everyone’s surprise, Johnny walked towards the recently arrived group, standing just next to Jisung, and he as well crossed his arms.

“Ten, we are here because the friend we made will leave soon. A dear friend to Xiaojun, because while all of us stopped inviting him around just because ´he spends so much time on the shadows, there is no need for us to invite him to be around us´, Shotaro talked with him and always brought him new things just to count him in.”

The couple had a moment where death glares were shared, and a wordless discussion was held between them, but soon Ten sighed in defeat, walking abruptly towards the group and bumping his shoulders against Johnny, harshly moving away from him.

“Let’s go then! Hurry up!”

Exasperated, the tiger shifter rushed them with an annoyed look on his blue eyes. But it was understandable, he was angry because he got interrupted while making out, and Ten took very seriously his romance. That’s why no one was surprised when, despite the tantrum seconds ago, Ten and Johnny were soon holding hands.

That calmness soon faded away once they arrived were Taeil left Sungchan, Shotaro and Xiaojun.

**_There was no one sitting on the bench._ **

“Where are they, hyung?”

Renjun asked while trying to remain calm as possible, looking around to see any trace of the humans or Xiaojun. But the tension was building up and all the creatures could feel it.

A nervous laugh left Johnny, who tightened his hold on Ten’s hand. Taeil remained quiet and confused for a second, looking around **_and beyond_** in hopes to find something. Something that would calm him down enough to give an answer, a comforting answer. But his heart dropped upon realizing something.

“D-don’t do that hyung, why you are **expressing** things with you face, why is he doing that?”

Ten asked the group, clearly unpleased and surprised at the sight of the augur having one of his esoteric moments. He wasn’t the only one disturbed because he saw how Jaemin whispered something to Jisung, who was as surprised as them. He even felt Johnny tense up, and that wasn’t helping at all.

“Let’s… Let’s find the others, now.”

And as soon as the words were exchanged they got divided in groups to collect their peculiar group of creatures. Taeil hurried them, of course, **_something was going on, something serious._**

One by one the creatures were collected, just with a simple **_Taeil looks distressed_** , because everyone knew what it meant, it was no joke when the augur left his impassible state; he had seen so many things that nothing disturbed him anymore. Today was a clear exception and everyone was worried.

Soon, everyone was reunited where Taeil left Sungchan, Shotaro and Xiaojun, and everyone was extremely worried, because yes, they did find Lucas befriending some dudes playing bear pong, and Jungwoo was chatting with some girls about the importance of consent and how to take someone’s eyes out if they dare to assault them on the streets, they even found Taeyong hanging upside down from a chandelier while Doyoung and a bunch of humans cheered for him, **_but they didn’t find their humans, nor they find Xiaojun._**

“Jaemin, Jaehyun, help me… We have to use our extra sensorial gifts because… they are not here. And those strange creatures…”

Taeil was about to continue, but Yangyang stopped him, frowning as he stepped to the front quite confused. He had just been talking to some German girls he found and his words were mixing up.

“What creatures? Us?”

Yangyang asked with confusion, looking around in hopes of receiving an explanation, but he only received soft shrugs and more confused expressions. He was going to demand more answers, but soon looked how the psychics of their groups were already lost in a beyond world of auras, visions and perceptions.

“Taeil said he left the three of them alone and after he came back, Xiaojun, Shotaro and Sungchan were gone.”

Yangyang felt the voice of one of the foxes whispering next to him, it turned out to be Haechan, whose eyes were fixated on Jaemin. Soon Hendery and Yuta joined his fox friend, and shared more info with Yangyang.

“Ten said that Xiaojun went crazy and that Sungchan and Shotaro tried to stop him, but you know he talks out of suppositions. After the incident, he and Xiaojun have been so apart,”

Yuta sighed softly, a bit hurt about the fact that their night out was turning out to be something unknown and dangerous. His heart was beating fast with fear because the kitsune cared deeply for Shotaro and now he was missing. And a bad vibe was creeping around the place.

The Japanese creature was surprised by a hand holding his, fingers quickly intertwining, causing Yuta’s eyes to rise up and encounter the shape of Jungwoo looking to the front, were the tree psychics were doing their magic. And the creatures surrounding them were making the effort to make it seem as natural as they could because they didn’t need curious eyes interrupting something as precise as what Taeil, Jaehyun and Jaemin were doing.

“They are fine.”

Jungwoo didn’t direct his eyes towards Yuta. But the words were for the worried Kitsune.

**_More soon that later, Jungwoo had to eat his words up._ **

****

Jaemin carried two hands to his mouth, soon falling to his knees and choking on the air as he tried to avoid any screaming, Jaehyun only shook his head with disbelief, as his eyes were back to the silver and gold irises accompanied by a subtle redness and tears beginning to escape from his eyes.

But what freaked everyone out was Taeil. After that night all the creatures agreed on something.

**_They never wanted to see Taeil show any expression again._ **

They rushed still acting with discretion. Jaehyun was guiding them through the people and even if they all wanted to fly, run, move, _they couldn’t_ because it would draw attention towards them and the creatures didn’t need more people involved in something as tragic as what was going on.

In groups of three and four they made their way to the spot in the railing that then led them to the forested area, and once the twenty one of them were together, they began to run and fly on the safety of the darkness.

Jungwoo was still holding Yuta’s hand but now the succubus was crying due to his fear and worry. The psychics only told them that there was something atrocious going on, and left them with unanswered questions.

And as they rushed through the unknown forest, the answers to his fears were becoming more loud and _terrible._

**_It happened near the creek. That’s where they found them._ **

****

The first one to give an attack was Johnny, lifting Doyoung and instantly throwing him at the direction of the big beast that was hovering over a body. The alligator hybrid didn’t hesitate and instantly inserted his claws with a rage he didn’t use ages ago.

The creature _howled_ with pain, and soon Doyoung was followed by the tree foxes: Haechan, who was a Kumiho, Hendery who was a Huli Jing and Yuta who was a Kitsune. The Kumiho didn’t hesitate and allowed all his repressed desires to flow through his body, soon inserting his fanged mouth in the hairy flesh of what seemed to be a wolf, while the Huli jing and Doyoung kept attacking.

But Yuta jumped off the beast to run towards the body the animal was so keen to protect. Upon finding who it was, his heart dropped with sorrow.

The always sweet and cheerful Shotaro was now a ball of tears and panic, marks of claws were printed on his skin while a profound bite was displayed on the side of his body. And the blood, there was a lot of blood that just didn’t stop flowing.

Yuta immediately kneeled, full of frenetic energy trying to find a way to help the human. The hands of the kitsune were soon painted red as he was trying to find a way of covering up the injuries, and between his sobs and tears, a trembling hand stopped him.

“Sungchan, find…”

Shotaro didn’t finish his sentence because a high pitched scream filled the air. Yuta and Shotaro exchanged a disbelief expression, unable to say a word.

Then Jungwoo screamed Sungchan’s name, again.

**_The succubus then did what no one expected._ **

A jump was enough to wrestle down the monster hovering over the body. It seemed like a normal man, but the creatures there knew that he wasn’t. And the rage Jungwoo was using to punch the foreigners face was enough to impress everyone. Punch after punch, his grunts and tears were only answered by laughs and soon enough Jungwoo was thrown away, impacting a three and soon falling down.

And when the foreigner was about to do something, Jaehyun used a simple hand movement and stopped him with a purple and white mist surrounding the one who attacked Sungchan.

“There is no time to wait or whatever, Johnny pick him up! We have to find the bunker!”

Ten was scared for once, the shivers noticeable in his voice and the way he hurried the demon to help their human friend who was considerable more affected than Sungchan.

The sound of wrestling in the back was diminishing, it seemed that a big group was able to take down and hurt enough the wolf-like creature. But the sharp laugh of the man covered in blood stop everyone from doing something to help the injured human.

“ _Pathetic”_

A punch provided by the Canadian demon was the last straw for everyone to realize what was actually going on.

No indication was needed. Soon Ten took his true form, a big white tiger was in the middle of the forest as Johnny and Mark hurried to climb the shifter with Sungchan on their arms.

Soon, Yuta arrived to where the tiger was, begging them to also carry Shotaro because there was still a wolf to tame and as soon as he said those words, Haechan threw the wolf to the river, hurting the animal enough to it to turn back into human form, and for everyone’s satisfaction, the parts where Haechan bit and ripped of the flesh were bleeding as much as Sungchan and Shotaro did.

But the humans were staining Ten’s fur, and the two aggressors were just laughing it off as if they were heartless maniacs.

The creatures knew that **_the time was ticking away. They were losing their friends._**

* * *

“They are from USA. A vampire and a werewolf. They’ve been tracking down Sungchan and Shotaro since weeks ago”

Jaemin explained to the others, during their way to the bunker guided by the trembling explanations of Sungchan, the psychic dived into the mind of the agressors and searched for information and explanation to **why they did that.**

The doors of their bunker were opened by Lucas and Jeno, and everyone hurried inside with much noise and grunting due to the efforts of dragging the foreigners around.

The chaos of the unfolding of the night made everyone forget that there was one piece of their puzzle missing, and when they arrived to the living room and found Xiaojun silently painting with the gifts Sungchan and Shotaro brought for him over the month, the chaos grew more and more.

“You were supposed to take care of them! Where were you?”

The kitsune made his way with strong and quick steps towards Xiaojun, inevitably punching him on the face and causing surprised gasps fill the room. With big surprised eyes Xiaojun received the punch and just when Yuta was about to attack more, Hendery shouted at him.

“Punching him won’t save Shotaro!”

Hendery exclaimed while trying to keep his voice as neutral as he could. 

“Guys, there is no saving we can do. If they are a werewolf and a vampire, it means that… They’ll be one of them too. **_One of us,_** this wounds… Vampires do this because they have to die in order to become part of the undead,”

Johnny explained with gloom in his words as he carried Sungchan in his arms, promising everything was going to be alright, and encouraging him to stay awake.

Xiaojun then understood what was going on and hurried to help, soon being stopped by two pairs of arms. After that everyone separated and went to different rooms, with the hopes of helping Shotaro and Sungchan in this unwanted change that they were enduring.

It was true **_there was nothing they could do more than wait._**

* * *


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is no turning back now, just accepting the change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> content warning for HEAVY mentions of death, blood, murder, pain, injuries and MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH. please read with precaution.

“Guys! Shotaro is, literally **_burning,_** the fucking bite is taking too much of him!”

Yuta’s furious voice resonated through the bunker, standing out from the incoherent voices surrounding him that were rushed trying to help the two younger ones. He could hear Hendery and Haechan arguing about what to do and how they were so dumb.

Chenle was yelling at Xiaojun for him to go back to his coffin, and Xiaojun was begging to be close to Sungchan because he could help, but a quick no from… Ten? Was enough to stop the begging, and slurred steps marked the leaving of Xiaojun.

Just when the voices were calming down their tones, a hurtful cry resonated through the humid decaying halls of their hideout. Jungwoo felt his guts twisting with sadness as Shotaro’s voice pleaded for the fever to stop. He couldn’t understand much of Yuta’s words that were now softly bringing reassurance in Japanese, and despite the hurtful image of seeing Shotaro’s side bleeding and his tears staining his puffed cheeks, Yuta stayed strong and held him tightly, taking away the pieces of silver jewelry the young boy used in his clothes.

Still, Jungwoo’s eyes were fixated on Sungchan, who was shaking with fear as his bloodied hand was tightly holding Yangyang’s clawed hands. Everything was stained with blood of the younger one, the wounds that the North American vampire inflicted were deep, but that was the intention. What Johnny and Mark told them was true. **_And painful._**

“How is he?” Jeno asked in a whisper. None heard him coming from the other room, but it was understandable: sound was overlapping. Hearts beating, screaming and crying, muffled mumbling coming out of Sungchan’s lips.

“ _I’m okay, hyung._ ”

Sungchan’s trembling voice surprised everyone, and eyes full of disbelief looked at him, who was smiling faintly, lips still red with the blood of the vampire that took away his soul and the bag under his eyes were more visible thanks to how pale he got due to the fact he was **_dying_**.

It seemed that he was going to hang on a bit more, and they were glad, but their hopes sank even deeper when the younger began to cough. His humid cough was product of the blood, and the creatures surrounding him rushed to take care of him and help as much as they could.

Doyoung gently brushed the black locks of hair out of his sweaty forehead, worry was visible on his scaled factions, his yellow eyes didn’t glow as they used to, but somehow he managed a smile, and so did Jungwoo. _Everything was going to turn out okay, **it had to.**_

“Lucas went out, he is bringing your **_food,_** ”

Doyoung whispered, tears were straining his face and his scales, but he could only smile to Sungchan, because he wanted to give him courage even if it was hard due to the fatidic twist their night took. White people, **_assholes_**.

Yangyang began to hum a broken lullaby, trying to be as careful as possible with his claws and helping Sungchan spit out the blood.

It was way too sad to see that young boy with the bright smile that invited them to a fun night were they could be free now dying just to resurrect to an immortal life of pain. Jungwoo sighed, kneeling closer. His lips were trembling, looking for words to share, but a defeated sigh left him.

“It’s okay, you can let go, **_die, Sungchan._** We will be here when you wake up,”

He finally shared, a hand softly cupping his head as a nod was given to the younger one who blinked one last time, the fear of understanding what was going on glowed in his eyes, the understanding of what was the end of this uneventful night filled him, and he shed some tears until his beat stopped and his eyes looked blankly to the roof above them.

Silence took over the place, and only the whimpering off Shotaro could be heard.

“Take him to Xiaojun’s coffin and stay with him until he wakes up. Johnny and Mark finished interviewing the white idiots who attacked them. Send Xiaojun our way, too. He will have time to apologize later.”

Jaehyun’s voice whispered in Jungwoo’s, Doyoung’s and Yangyang’s head, and they gave a silent nod, picking up the now forever lifeless body of Sungchan. The wounds were just starting to heal, which was a good thing, but still terribly sad knowing the situation.

As they made their way out Shotaro tried to stand up, worry and sadness afflicted him.

“Sungchan? What happened to him? Where are they taking him?”

His soft voice was full of trembles as his body was shaking due to the fever that was turning his body forever.

“It’s okay little one, give him time, rest, rest we are here with you,”

Yuta murmured, nodding at Haechan and Hendery, who quickly pushed down the thin body of Shotaro, keeping him in place so he could endure the pain that was crushing his body and changing all that he was.

Sweat was dripping from his hair, and his eyes were dilated and, even if the werewolf bit him a while ago, he wasn’t fully turn, there was a part of him that was still **_fighting_**. Yuta couldn’t blame him.

Sungchan and Shotaro always talked about their families, about the things they used to do, how much time they spent together, how **_happy_** they were, and now, all that life was slipping out of their fingers in a silently painful death and morphing.

The kitsune quickly cleaned a tear that was running down his cheek, soon taking a breath. After that, with a careful motion, he quickly brushed the hair that was sticking to the frame of the delicate face of Shotaro.

“We will find a way to say goodbye, Shotaro, but you need to accept it.”

Yuta began to murmur in Japanese, locking eyes with the younger one who soon began to pout, knowing he had to face the reality, the painful reality of going away forever.

Shotaro swallowed slowly, looking away and quickly holding Jaemin’s hand, who was sitting close to him. His white eyes blinked in Shotaro’s direction, smiling softly and interlinking their fingers.

Soon enough the Japanese boy gave himself away to the turning, bones crushing, heat rising, skin shedding and soon enough grunts and growl took over the place as the shape of the young boy banished to give space to a small silver haired wolf that was scared and hurt.

Everyone looked at him with surprise and the soft whimpers of the young one were enough to let them know he was still scared. Soon more grunts filled the living room as the white tiger joined the group, and as a silent conversation was shared between the two shifters, everyone left them alone, knowing that Ten was the only one able to take care of the situation now.

With a heavy sigh the remaining creatures walked to where Johnny and Mark where with the foreigners. **_Life was completely changed for their ex-human_** friends, now there was nothing that could be done more than wait and find a way to allow them to say goodbye to the life that was stolen from them.

* * *

"They told me it was okay to leave,”

Xiaojun whispered to Jungwoo and Yuta, who joined him to watch over Sungchan. Yuta was still angry, and the demon was covering the wounds caused by fighting against the vampire. Xiaojun was just sad and wrecked by how naïve his actions were. He felt as if he was dying again, because the guilt was killing him slowly and merciless.

“You shouldn’t have listened to them. It was foolish.”  
The kitsune walked towards the entrance, gloom present on his words as he exited the room, but Jungwoo stayed with Xiaojun, softly hugging him by the shoulders.

“You didn’t want to hurt anyone, you were just trying to keep everyone safe, _they_ won’t hate you, and that’s enough,”

The Succubus comforted with nice words despite the tears previously shared. It has been an hour since Sungchan died, and the wait was too long for them. Fear of actually losing Sungchan was present on everyone’s heart, but they were good enough at hiding it.

After the small conversation silence remained in the room for various minutes, until Jungwoo coughed.

“They are going to tie up the vampire at the roof, make him endure sunlight. As for the werewolf… Everyone agreed on Haechan killing him and devouring his heart. He is angry.”

Xiaojun nodded with a sigh, then, he placed his hands on his temple and massaged it slowly as deep exhalations left his mouth.

A noise from the outside interrupted the quiet atmosphere of the room, soon, Lucas was opening the door and throwing two people inside. He had a sorry look on his eyes as he pointed what he just brought.

“I found them stealing some things, it’s for Sungchan to feed when he wakes up… I’m sorry Jun, he was my priority.”

The flying creature left as fast as he arrived, leaving the succubus and the Jiang Shi alone again. They exchanged sorry smiles and understanding. Jungwoo wasn’t judging Xiaojun, and Xiaojun didn’t feel pressured by Jungwoo. That moment was the most stable the undead creature had been for a while, and in the midst of such tragic happenings, he could feel some sort of relief.

Said relief got him through Sungchan’s painful awakening, and Jungwoo’s companion helped him endure the sight of his young friend crying for blood. It was a sight he had to get used to now, and he felt sorry and guilty as he watched the mess of blood the newborn vampire was making.

But Xiaojun was deemed to a life of pain, and he would never forgive the fact that he dragged two innocent people to such a pitiful life.

* * *

Hours after, once Sungchan was fed and Shotaro was calm (later on the learned that Shotaro wasn’t a werewolf, but a _lycanthrope_ ), everyone was sitting on their living room. A painful silence took over the place and the tension could be cut by swords. The first one talking was Xiaojun, who never left his place besides Jungwoo, the only one he was aware of not having hateful comments for him.

“I’m sorry.”

Was the only thing the undead could say, knowing no words could emend his naïve actions. The newborn vampire smiled at him and using a soft mannerism he dismissed the situation.

“We pushed you to go, we were naïve too. It was our fault too, we are sorry. I’m not angry right now. Just… shocked, sad and confused. But if any of you hate on Xiaojun hyung I will be angry.”

Sungchan’s words were clear despite of the thirst present on his raspy voice. A bottle of an unknown liquid was handed to the newborn vampire, and quickly his lips were stained with red as he drank.

Subtle whimpers from Shotaro were enough agreement to the statement shared by Sungchan, and so everyone sighed, nodding at the words shared by the new creatures.

Johnny stood up from his place, clearing his throat as he looked around.

“You’ll have to stay with us, and, I’m sorry for doing this so quickly, but tomorrow we will take you to your parents’ home. We will make them forget you and you’ll live with us from now on until… forever.”

The demon shrugged, guilt overflowing his words, but everyone knew there was no other choice or way to act. Sorrow decorated everyone’s face as subtle nods were shared. The last ones to agree were Sungchan and Shotaro.

**_But no one could turn back time. And oblivion was the easiest way out of the pain_**.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time to say goodbye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, thank you so much for reading this. This is the first fanfic i've written in a long time and the only one I actually finished, and I'm quite proud. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed despite of it being filled with heavy angst.
> 
> I will write short stories for this series about different moments of the monster bunch, stick around if you want to read them, and once again, thank you so much!

* * *

Goodbyes weren’t easy. The goodbye Sungchan and Shotaro had to endure was the hardest of them all. **_They had to say goodbye to themselves_**. Jaehyun explained to them that he was going to make a spell that would make every memory of the new creatures to be erased from the minds of all those that knew them as _humans._

Every trace of their life would be gone forever, as if they’ve never existed. It was like another punch in the guts for two kids that last night lost everything they were, but still they agreed with a faint smile.

After sleeping and once the sun appeared, the witch made his way out of the bunker, alongside the newly turned monsters. Sungchan was able to enjoy the day one last time thanks to a spell provided by Jaehyun, but even if it was powerful they had to hurry.

Time was always ticking away.

The first one to say goodbye was Shotaro, who entered his house with a bright smile and soon explained to his mom that he lost his phone and stayed at the house of some friend for the night. After that the lycanthrope hugged the woman as if it was the last time, **_because it was the last time_** and hurried himself down the hallway directed to his room were his two other friends already had entered through a window.

Shotaro collected some belongings he didn’t want to throw away (because the spell also included the vanishing of multiple belongings), he also took his luggage that was ready for when they went back to Japan. But that was never going to happen.

After that, Jaehyun did the spell. And silently they got out of the house of the woman who was no longer Shotaro’s mom.

Sungchan’s turn was a bit harder, fighting his thirst and trying to find a way to explain his mom how cold his skin was. If the woman thought something was off, she didn’t let it show, and brushed it off with a wide smile because she spent all her night worried about her son. Now he was home.

Sungchan collected his things, feeling a heavy weight on them now, because they were memories others would forget, and he hated the idea of being forgotten, but he would despise himself if his new nature ended up hurting someone, so his responsibility outweighed his emotions.

After he collected some clothes and closed the duffel bag, Jaehyun did his spell, and Sungchan left the place that he couldn’t call home anymore.

When the night came and the boys settled down at their new rooms in their new home, the bunker, they cried. If they could turn back time things would be different and an immortal life wouldn’t be their future. But it wasn’t their choice.

At least, they weren’t alone in this new life, and the twenty-one smiles that greeted them when they finally mustered up the strength to leave their dorms were enough to make them believe that, eventually, their wounds would be healed and eternity would become just another word.

* * *

[here is my twitter, uwu](https://twitter.com/songofthewind00)


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